MANILA, Philippines?Say you?re in the middle of Edsa on a hot afternoon, your hands jammed on the steering wheel, the chaos of the road cramming your senses and claiming every bit of your concentration.

Your phone rings. You can?t take your hands off the steering wheel, but you need to find out who?s calling. So you look at your watch, which displays the name and number of the caller. Turns out it?s someone you?ve been trying to avoid. You reach for your watch and press a key to reject the call.

Or, say you?re in one part of your living room while your music phone is plugged into speakers and blasting out your favorite playlist in another corner. You feel bored with the music, but don?t want to get off your chair to manually fiddle with the phone.

There?s another way. You press some keys on your watch, and voila, you?ve browsed through the playlist, changed music tracks and increased the volume. Your phone has become your remote control.

Dick Tracy gadgetry? James Bond fiction? Some 10 years ago, perhaps, but not anymore. Not with the new Sony Ericsson MBW-150 Bluetooth watches, which are set to debut in Manila within the first quarter of this year.

These watches are designed to offer consumers the breakthrough convenience of controlling their phones from their trusty wristwatch. While Bluetooth has been a standard feature of many mobile brands, Sony Ericsson utilizes the technology in striking new ways by embedding it into timepieces and integrating them with ever more sophisticated handsets.

Three variants

The MBW-150 Bluetooth Series, which comes in three variants, has been created in collaboration with Fossil, a globally recognized name in watch technology.

The result of their joint efforts are three models that exemplify elegant contemporary design married to cutting-edge technology. All three variants come with a scratch-resistant mineral crystal glass face with anti-glare coating, and on the surface look like regular watches.

The devil, of course, is in the details. The Executive Edition comes in a professional-looking stainless steel bracelet, while the Classic Edition has a premium leather strap and black face. The Music Edition is also in black, but has shades in orange, making it the funkiest-looking variant.

A discreet OLED display at the bottom is the only indication of the watches? unique Bluetooth feature. When Bluetooth is turned on, the display lights up with icons for specific watch-to-phone functions, plus a digital time display that?s fully synchronized with the phone based on the timepiece?s Quartz analogue precision movement.

Reliable within a range of 10 meters (ideally without solid objects in between), these Bluetooth-enabled watches allow you to manage calls or music with greater ease. The phone and the watch requires a one-off pairing procedure in the beginning, and thereafter, the watch automatically connects to the phone every time the two devices are within range of each other. (The watch can only be paired with one phone at a time.)

Outside of the 10-m range, the watch vibrates and an icon appears on the OLED display to alert you of the situation. The connection is cut off once the two gadgets are out of range for more than 24 hours, but reconnection is easily made with one touch of a watch key.

Top-of-mind gadgets

Because Sony Ericsson phones have made their mark as top-of-mind gadgets when it comes to music, the MBW-150 watches take advantage of that primacy by enhancing the music experience of customers through its Bluetooth feature.

With one or two light touches on a watch button, you can view tracks, adjust the volume, change the tune or turn off the music you?re listening to, without having to fish the phone out of your bag or pocket.

Similarly, you can manage your calls via the Sony Ericsson timepiece without having to, say, break off that important meeting you?re in the middle of. The watch vibrates to alert you every time your phone receives a text message. A similar thing happens when the phone rings, but this time, the name or number of the caller is displayed on the OLED display of the watch. All it takes is one touch of a key to mute or reject a call.

The MBW-150 is water-resistant up to 30 meters, and is powered by a rechargeable battery that needs charging for two hours before the timepiece can be used (a charging clip comes free with the package).

Its Bluetooth functionality remains in effect for up to seven days, while the analogue timekeeping can last for seven days more. A battery status indicator on the OLED display alerts you when you need to recharge the watch.

Compatibility is, at present, limited to Sony Ericsson phones, particularly with the new W910 Walkman phone for the MBW-150 Music Edition, the K850 Cyber-shot phone for the Classic Edition, and the Sony Ericsson P1 for the Executive Edition. (A full list can be viewed at www.sonyericsson.com/accessories)

Today, it?s music and phone calls. Tomorrow, who knows what other everyday activities might end up being managed, enhanced, rendered effortless with a touch or two of your wristwatch?

This is not Dick Tracy or James Bond fiction anymore. For now, it?s called the Sony Ericsson MBW-150 Bluetooth watch.

E-mail the author at gcadiz@inquirer.com.ph, visit www.gibbscadiz.com